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Countries all over the world are coming up with policies and incentives targeted towards semiconductor manufacturers. It is due to the dependence countries will have on semiconductors which are the backbone of the digital economy.

In the same line, India has also come up with several incentives to foster the semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem. However, incentives only help to a certain extent and beyond which laser-focused road map driven planning is required. The road map also empowers the potential investors and enables them to diversify investment as part of the long-term strategy.

When it comes to the semiconductor manufacturing road map, no one recipe fits all. India needs its India-specific road map for semiconductor manufacturing. India is already home to the majority of the top semiconductor design and research institutes. It makes the process of building semiconductor manufacturing slightly less complex but still requires a long-term strategy.

A road map can have several key components. However, if incorporated well, it can enable a steady and robust semiconductor manufacturing growth in India.

Private Players: Private players are critical in enabling semiconductor manufacturing. These private players often have to invest a large sum of money for a semiconductor manufacturing plant. There are already several incentives that the Indian government has launched. Now, India needs one top semiconductor manufacturer to take advantage of these schemes and thus slowly turn the plan into reality. Private entities should also actively engage with the government. It should provide a detailed overview of where the bottleneck lies and how government can help in filling these gaps.

Country Specific FAB: India has the market and demand for semiconductor products. Focusing on these requirements and then building the semiconductor FAB can enable India (private and government) to drive in-house requirements. It will also require the potential semiconductor manufacturers to focus on semiconductor technologies that fulfill the semiconductor demand for India. And, as a long-term strategy, it can also lay the foundation of future semiconductor technology for India and the world.

OSAT To Support FAB: Semiconductor FAB by itself does not make up the semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem. It requires a support system in the form of a supply chain, which also includes OSAT. OSAT is critical to enable packaged goods to the customer. India already has OSAT specific policies, and taking advantage of them to drive the support environment can bring an end-to-end semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem.

Cluster Approach: India is already home to top non-semiconductor manufacturing companies. These companies have been successfully catering to not only India’s demand but also exporting to different countries. Automotive is one such example. Over the decades, dedicated automotive regions have turned into giant clusters with end-to-end automotive-focused manufacturing needs. As India moves towards the next era of the wireless and digitally connected economy, similarly, semiconductor-focused cluster manufacturing is the need of the hour.

Collaboration: In the end, semiconductor manufacturing is all about long-term planning. Either with customers or with public bodies. All of the successful semiconductor manufacturing-focused clusters around the globe are actively collaborating and redefining their planning. They do so by actively engaging with the universities or with other private players. Such a long-term collaboration is key to driving next-gen innovation. India needs to have a collaborative environment to drive in-country semiconductor manufacturing. Several attempts have failed, and India certainly needs one such collaboration to kick off the semiconductor manufacturing story.

Successful and profitable semiconductor manufacturing region today started with one FAB or OSAT. Today, these regions are a big part of semiconductor manufacturing and are re-developing for the next century.

Without a medium to large-scale FAB/OSAT, India will stay dependent on its future semiconductor demands. It is about time that India embarks on the road map for the next decade. Otherwise, the gap between the semiconductor demand and semiconductor manufacturing in India will keep growing, and India will be more dependent than ever.